Scandal

by Heather Cullman

  Though they had been friends since that day in Grosvenor Square Park, laughing and teasing and enjoying each other's company immensely, she had never once given any indication that she might welcome his more intimate advances. Granted, she had seemed to respond to the kiss he had been required to give her at the announcement of their engagement, her mouth pliant beneath his as she had melted into his embrace. But aside from that solitary kiss their physical intimacy had never gone beyond holding hands and an occasional peck on the cheek, the latter of which served simply to demonstrate their affection for each other to the ton.

  Then again, they were wed now. Naturally the ceremony had served to change their relationship. To be sure, he had expected it to do so, just not so quickly or dramatically.

  Suddenly wondering if her father was behind the change, if he had, perhaps, instructed her to play the whore, Gideon stepped into the room. It made sense, really. After all, the happier he was with Julia, the safer Lord Stanwell's sordid secret would be. His insides coiled in anger at the very thought. If what he suspected was indeed true, then the bastard had no doubt used some new threat against Julia's siblings to bend her to his will.

  Well, to the devil with Lord Stanwell and his insidious machinations! He would be damned before he would allow either Julia or himself to be manipulated by him again. He most certainly would not let Julia hawk her virtue like a wharf-side doxy to serve the blackguard's purpose.

  Hard put now to hide his fury, Gideon forced himself to smile at his wife, saying in as gentle a voice as he could manage, "You do not have to do this, Julia. Not tonight. I had thought to wait to claim my husbandly rights until after you had become comfortable with being my wife." That much was true. In fact, he would not have come to her chamber at all tonight had he not received an urgent missive from Lancashire that required him to do so. Summarily reminded of the purpose of his visit, he added, "I came only to tell you that we must leave for Lancashire at dawn. I have had a letter-"

  "You do not desire me?" she interrupted, her face falling and her tone forlorn.

  "It is not that-"

  "Then you do desire me?" She could not have looked more sweetly hopeful.

  "Of course, I do. You are very lovely," he gallantly replied. Of course he lied. He was simply being kind. He did not desire her. Not in the least.

  Or did he?

  His eyes narrowed, seeming to see her anew. She stood bathed in the warm candlelight, a molten creature of fire and ivory. As befitted a bride, her hair was unbound, rippling to her waist in waves of flame-kissed gold. The sight of it, so bright and silky, made him long to bury his hands in it, to twist and coil it around them until her head bent back, allowing his mouth to ravish those ripe lips that beckoned him with their smile. He wanted to tear that web thin gown from her luscious body and stroke the pale flesh beneath, to fondle and caress her until he awakened her passion and made her cry out in need.

  Did he desire her? The sudden lust gripping his loins answered for him. Oh, yes. It seemed that he had developed a taste for her wan English beauty.

  She moved then, her gait sinuous as she advanced toward him. Before he quite knew what was happening, she twined her arms around his neck, drawing his face down to hers, purring, "I desire you as well, Gideon. And I quite like being your wife." Her lips were a scant inch from his now. "So you see? There is no need to wait for me to become accustomed to the idea of our marriage. Indeed, I shall be exceedingly disappointed if you make me wait." With that, she pressed her lips to his.

  That she was unaccustomed to kissing was apparent from her closed mouth and chastely pursed lips. Oddly aroused by her inexperience, Gideon groaned and crushed her into his embrace, pulling her up onto her tiptoes to give her a thorough lesson in kissing. She gasped, as if startled, her lips pulling from his.

  He smiled wickedly, his voice thick with desire as he whispered, "Let it never be said that I am a man to disappoint a lady." He had the presence of mind to kick the door closed before reclaiming her lips with his.

  His mouth was hot, hungry as it covered hers, his hands rough in their eagerness as he twined his fingers through her hair, pulling her face yet nearer to his. Eager to fully possess her mouth, to taste the sweetness within, he slid his tongue between her lips, lightly licking and caressing them, seeking permission to enter.

  Julia granted it with a stunned gasp, a delicious shudder heating her body as his tongue invaded her mouth, twining with hers in a way that made her go limp in his arms. Amy had said nothing about such kissing, nor had she uttered a single word about the rippling excitement she now felt beneath the onslaught of his passion. It was a sensation unlike any she had ever felt before . . . fierce, demanding, intoxicating. And she could not seem to get enough of it. Driven now by her powerful response to him, she returned his kiss in kind, her body moving and molding against his as she opened her mouth yet wider, her tongue stroking his, coaxing and inviting his ardor.

  His hand found her breast then, first squeezing and flattening, now closing over it to cradle it, his thumb teasing her nipple through the thin fabric of her gown. She made a mewling noise deep in her throat, instinctively moving against his hand to urge him on, her insides seeming to throb and burn beneath the pleasurable sensations radiating through her body. In the next instant his mouth lifted from hers, lowering again on her throat to press nibbling kisses down its length.

  Julia moaned, her arms tightening around his neck in shameless abandon, guiding his kisses even lower. He growled once, and swept her up into his arms. Covering the distance to the bed in several long strides, he laid her on the coverlet, his mouth once more on hers as he came down beside her.

  As he kissed her, his lips again shaping to hers, his tongue boldly plundering, he lifted her gown, slipping it up to caress the flesh beneath. His touch gentle, almost tickling in its lightness, he stroked up the length of her legs, tracing a meandering line over her thighs that made her nether regions pulse and melt, flooding them with damp warmth. Now he was on her stomach, brushing and massaging, now on her breasts, again teasing her nipples until they throbbed and ached. Then, in a single deft motion he pulled her gown up and off, tossing it aside as he sat back on his heels to admire her naked form.

  Dear God, but she was beautiful! Her breasts were full and round? tipped by the most luscious nipples he had ever seen. Her waist and hips, though not particularly defined, were sleek and supple, womanly without being overblown. Her legs, too, were slender, but shapely and long, bisected at their apex by a triangle of golden red curls.

  Mesmerized by the sight of her lying before him, her pale skin glowing as if powdered by ground pearls, Gideon combed his fingers through those womanly curls, stroking and teasing them. She trembled, a soft noise escaping her throat. His own body now racked by savage need, he let his fingers glide lower, dropping between her legs to touch and stroke her there.

  Julia froze at the resulting sensation, electrified by pleasure. Then she moaned, her thighs parting to welcome his intimate invasion. Over and over again he caressed her there, at first gently, then firmly. Then he dipped his head down to taste her. It was unlike anything she had ever felt before, a delight beyond all imagining, one that seemed to swell with every brush of his tongue, with every nibble and suckle.

  "Gideon," she gasped, begging for more, though what she wanted, she did not know. And then it happened, an explosion of ecstasy inside her such as she could never have imagined. Crying her rapture, she surged against his lips, clasping his face against her as wave after powerful wave of pleasure rolled through her, making her tremble and sob. When at last the sensation ebbed, she fell back to the mattress, spent.

  "Oh, Gideon. That was a miracle," she whispered, as he drew her into his arms to cradle her nude form against his still-clothed one.

  He chuckled and kissed the top of her head. "I am glad you approve, for I would not be a gentleman if I did not pleasure my lady. And we both know how hard I am trying to be a gentleman."

  Pleas
ure . . . me? Reality crashed back to Julia at his words, instantly pulling her from her satisfied stupor. Oh, heavens! It was she who was supposed to be pleasuring him. He was no doubt feeling quite dissatisfied with her about now. Thinking quickly and praying that it was not too late to make amends, she bantered back, "And I shall never qualify as a lady unless I pleasure my gentleman in return."

  To her relief, he grinned, a very wicked and delighted grin. "Your servant, my lady," he responded with a chuckle.

  Julia smiled back, her mind frantically dredging up Amy's lessons, which had become trapped somewhere between her brandy-induced haze and the remaining fog of her passion. Hmmm. If she remembered correctly, the first order of business was to kiss him again and then remove his clothes. Fortunately for her, he was in undress, which meant that he wore only a dressing gown over his breeches and shirt, saving her the complication of having to divest him of his coat, waistcoat, and whatever else men wore.

  Now feeling bashful in her nudity, yet mindful of Amy's counsel about men being titillated by the view of women's unclothed forms, Julia rolled over onto her belly and pressed her lips to Gideon's. As she kissed him, imitating the tongue thrusts and swirls that she had found so stimulating when he had used them on her, she tugged at the sash holding his red-and-gold patterned dressing gown closed, determined to remove it as smoothly as he had removed her gown. It was firmly knotted and refused to loosen.

  Bridling her urge to snort her frustration, she lifted her lips from Gideon's, gracing him with what she hoped was a seductive smile before turning her attention to the obstinate knot. After several moments of plucking and pulling, it came loose. Expelling a sigh of relief, she opened the garment, only to have her breath strangle in her throat at what it uncovered.

  It appeared that Helene had been correct when she had predicted that his male parts would be enormous. They had to be to make such a massive bulge in his breeches. Feeling the blood drain from her face in her horror, she tore her gaze away, forcing herself to smile as she resumed the business of undressing him.

  He had the overly large male parts of a commoner. Please, God. Please! Make him have enough gentle blood in his veins to wield them with care.

  The remnants of her earlier passion dissolving in her mounting dread, she finished removing his dressing gown, an act he helped her accomplish. When it was duly tossed aside, her hands went to his neckcloth. That, too, fell by the wayside, followed in quick succession by his shirt. As he lay back down again, having sat up to allow her to strip him of his shirt, she caught her first full glimpse of his bare upper body.

  He was rather lovely. And strong. Aggressively so, with his broad shoulders, powerful arms, and muscular chest. Impressed, in spite of her trepidation, she let her gaze trace the tapering line of his waist, experiencing an odd fluttering sensation deep inside her as she noticed the rippling strength of his taut belly. Lovely, yes. He was very well made indeed. Lost in admiration, she dropped her gaze yet lower. When it touched the swelling mound on his groin, she jerked it back up again.

  Think of your siblings, she frantically ordered herself, reminding herself of her purpose. If she could show him the same sort of pleasure he had just shown her, he was certain to allow them to stay with her as long as she pleased. Her determination thus bolstered, she again concentrated on Amy's lessons.

  Now that she had his chest bare, she must kiss and caress it. Worship his body with her mouth and tongue, the book had instructed. Remembering how wonderful his mouth had felt on her throat, she started with his neck, imitating his soft nips and teasing licks. Down his neck and over the smooth tautness of his collarbone she trailed, then lower to cover the hard, sculpted contours of his chest with kisses, pausing at his flat male nipples to suckle them as he had hers.

  Gideon groaned, his breathing becoming harsh and ragged as she continued downward, now biting, now sucking, and now lightly licking. Then she reached his belly, where she lingered, her teeth playfully biting, her tongue teasing and probing his navel. His groin tightened brutally in response, the wrenching in his loins making him whimper and thrash.

  Dear God, it was too much! He could not bear it. It had been far too long since he'd had a woman to be able to endure such inflammatory fondling without disgracing himself. To his relief, she paused at the waist of his breeches, seeming to consider what to do next. His succor, however, was short-lived, for in what seemed like the next instant, her hands were on his fall, unbuttoning it. His breath froze in his chest, bated by his agonized anticipation. Any second now, she would expose him.

  For several moments she fumbled with the buttons, seeming to have trouble releasing them from their moorings; then the flap fell away, revealing the straining line of his sex. Again she paused, this time to gape at him, her eyes wide and her mouth forming an exaggerated O.

  Had Gideon not been in such a heat, he no doubt would have found her reaction to what was undoubtedly her first encounter with an erect penis comical. As it was, he was in too much torment over awaiting her next move to find amusement in anything at that moment. Fortunately, or unfortunately, depending on how you wished to view the matter, he did not have to wait long before she resumed her ministrations.

  Her hands now faintly trembling, she pushed his breeches opening wider, taking care not to touch the flesh that lay swollen and throbbing against his belly. Grasping either side of the opening, she eased the breeches over his hips and down his thighs. Though Gideon had kicked off his mules when he had climbed onto the bed beside her, he still wore his stockings, which she paused to remove.

  Grateful for the respite from her stimulation, he lay still, sucking in deep gasps of breath in an attempt to cool his lust while she fidgeted with his garter buckles. When she had at last removed his garters and stockings, an action followed by a hasty divestment of his breeches, she lightly stroked up his legs, as he had done to her, drawing tickling squiggles across his thighs and around his hips.

  Gideon moaned, the muscles in his buttocks bunching and tensing in his carnal torment as she teasingly sketched patterns in the thatch of hair at his groin, each time drawing nearer and nearer to the beleaguered source of his discomfort.

  Then she touched him, suddenly and without warning, her hand wrapping around his shaft to stroke his length. His body arched, a strangled cry tearing from his throat at the exquisite shock of pleasure. Again she stroked him, and again he responded with shattering urgency.

  "No! No. I cannot . . . You must not ..." he gasped out in a garbled, broken rush, grasping her shoulders to pull her away. Were he to allow her to continue pleasuring him, he would lose himself for sure, and he wanted to last long enough to show her the bridal bliss she deserved. The mere thought of taking her, of plunging his needful flesh into the honeyed sweetness he had tasted earlier made him growl, a guttural, feral sound, and wrench her into his arms. Now consumed by his raging urgency, he grasped the back of her head, his mouth hard and demanding as it captured hers, smothering her with his kisses.

  Julia gasped, horrified by the sudden forcefulness of his assault. His primitive urges! He was possessed by his primitive urges. And he seemed to be taking no pains to bridle them. Her panic mounted as he began to move against her, the unleashed power of his body terrifying her as she felt his muscles bunch and twitch as he crushed her yet tighter into his embrace. In the next instant his hand was between her legs, opening and spreading her, his finger slowly penetrating her, as if gauging her size.

  She stiffened at his intimate invasion, her legs clamping closed as she sought to escape it. "Gideon, no," she cried, but her protest was stifled by his kisses.

  Still clasping her against him, he rolled her onto her back, his leg lodging between her thighs to part them. Then she felt his sex, hot and hard and thrusting, gouging her where his finger had been only seconds before.

  She squeaked in panic. As large as he was, he was certain to hurt her terribly down there if he entered her. Considering his length, he might even kill her by ripping through
one of her vital organs. Now mindless to everything but her primal sense of self-preservation, Julia shrieked and hammered at his back.

  He pulled back, staring at her in shock. "Julia, sweetheart, whatever is the matter?" he murmured hoarsely.

  She tore herself free, scrambling to the opposite side of the bed where she huddled, protectively hugging her knees to her chest. "You cannot-you must not-I cannot-" she jabbered in breathless hysteria.

  "Julia. Please. Just tell me what is wrong," he gently implored, smiling with a tenderness that under different circumstances would have won her complete trust.

  She sobbed, tears now coursing down her cheeks. "Primitive . . . common . . ." she blurted out incoherently, then broke off, shaking her head.

  Gideon's eyes narrowed in his sudden comprehension. It had been an act. All of it. Her acceptance of him in the park. Her easy camaraderie in the aftermath of that encounter. Her response to his kiss at the announcement of their engagement. And now this, her eagerness to bed him.

  She viewed him as primitive and common. And though she had tried valiantly to do her duty, no doubt at her father's bidding, she simply could not bring herself to allow a mere commoner to take her.

  Damn her to hell, and take her blasted father with her!

  Furious, more enraged than he had ever been in his life, Gideon rose from the bed, too choked by anger to speak. Donning his dressing gown with deceptive calmness, he finally managed to hiss, "I see. Well, my dear. I must congratulate you on doing what no one else has ever managed to do."

  She sniffled, looking for all the world like the wounded innocent she pretended to be. "I d-do not understand." She frowned and shook her head. "W-what have I done?"

  "You have played me for a fool, damn you," he spat. "Well, be warned, Lady Julia." He flung her title at her like a stone. "Now that I know your game, I shall not be fooled again. You may have gotten what you wanted from our bargain, my dear, but you will never find peace in your gains."